Still time to have a say

electorate population of 65,241 (2006 census).

The Lower Hutt ward is even worse, with a population of 101,200.

The super-city case is being sold to us as a two-tier system with eight local boards making up some of the democratic deficit.

It would be a mistake to regard the local boards as having any real power.

The Local Government Act was amended last year to bring the local board entity into being. The Act is clear on the power relationship. Local boards cannot be responsible for any regulatory functions, for example planning.

Local boards can only have jobs delegated down to them by the unitary council. They will be able to propose and suggest to the unitary council, but they will not have any independent power.

All big decisions will be made centrally.

Porirua should retain its own city council. we are sharing our infrastructure: air, water, food, sewage, transport, hospitals, industry.

Pukerua Bay, all Hutt Valley, Wainuiomata – all this is tied up and can be run by one amalgamated council with representatives from local bodies.

The new council should not include areas north of the Rimutakas or Paekakariki.

It is not possible to satisfy everybody, but if people look to serve the community with justice and sincerity, then that is the best one can do. Porirua residents still have time to make submissions to the Local Government Commission on amalgamation.

All the arguments being put forward by one city monopoly advocates have been easily countered.

Only one, the possibility of economies of scale, has some merit.

Now that has been shot full of holes. The cost of amalgamation (now $210 million) will grow as sure as the cost of an Auckland

casino. We, the super-city ratepayers, will be paying for this folly for years.

The argument about bigger is better does not hold up in politics. Large public bodies just take the real decision-making further away from the bill-paying resident.

The irony of my opposition to super-city amalgamation is that as a left-of-centre activist I believe in the collective, while it is the right wing of politics who believe competition brings improvement.

However, I find some comfort in being in opposition to the Rodney Hyde vision of local government with less democracy and unelected boards delivering most services.

And all the time they’re surreptitiously trying to disguise the true agenda of privatising the money-making public utilities, like water, ports and airports.

As in all ‘‘democratic’’ systems, many people don’t have an

interest in politics when things are running well.

Then they wake up, as in Queensland right now, and vote by large majorities to deamalgamate.

We could save the grief and the money with a little effort now.

I don’t have a lot of faith in the submission process.

However, several years ago Wellington Regional Council wanted to replace Transmission Gully with an enlarged State Highway One through Porirua.

Porirua City was able to stop the destruction of Paremata and Plimmerton and get Transmission Gully back on course through strong submissions.

Let’s do it again by telling the commission where to stick its proposal.

was involved in reported to council in October 2013.

This review (led by Grant Thornton) identified savings in operating expenditure of between $2.4 million and $6.5 million per annum, which we are waiting for Porirua City Council to implement.

And we would argue that there are still more savings to be made without adversely affecting services to residents.

The potential $2.4 million saving represents about 4.5 per cent and $6.5 million saving represents 12 per cent of total Porirua operating ‘‘expenses’’ excluding interest and depreciation (about $54 million a year).

Hardly the ‘‘smell of an oily rag’’!